News

The latest edition of iLounge Weekly, our weekly newsletter covering all things iLounge, will be arriving in subscribers’ inboxes early next week. iLounge Weekly is a summary of the week’s best news, reviews, and feature articles we’ve published, and it also features giveaways and accessory discount offers from various companies. There’s still plenty of time to sign up and receive this week’s edition — just use the simple form below to submit your email address, if you haven’t done so already.

Following news earlier this week that Apple and BMW had been in discussions last year about using the BMW i3 as a foundation for its own electric car initiative, a new report from Reuters suggests that those negotiations may yet resume at some indeterminate point in the future. Sources familiar with the original talks told Reuters that the dialogue between the two companies ended last fall due to Apple’s desire to explore developing the car on its own and BMW was cautious about becoming a “mere supplier to a software or internet giant,” but had seemed willing to consider licensing parts. While one source indicated that “exploratory talks between senior managers may be revived at a later stage,” recent staff changes in the upper echelons of BMW may complicate matters, with the new CEO focusing on internal priorities rather than new projects along with the departure of Herbert Diess, the board member who led initial discussions with Apple. BMW’s new head of R&D, Klaus Froehlich, has stated that Apple and BMW have much in common, but indicated that his company would not “consider any deal that forces it to open up its core know-how to outsiders.”

Apple is on track to unveil its new Apple TV hardware this September, according to a new report from BuzzFeed News, however the rumoured TV subscription service won’t be accompanying it just yet. Several reports suggested that Apple originally planned to launch the new device at WWDC this past June, but refocused its efforts on Apple Music instead. A fall launch of the new hardware comes as little surprise, however there were expectations that Apple would launch a TV subscription service at the same time, however this latest news echoes a report from early June that suggested that it could easily be delayed into next year due to delays in finalizing licensing deals. The next-generation Apple TV is expected to be announced during the fall iPhone event and remains in line with what previous rumours have indicated, with a new, slimmer design and an Apple A8 CPU, a “drastically improved” remote with touch-pad input, Siri support, and an App Store and SDK to provide support for third-party apps.

Apple has released a second iOS 8.4.1 beta to developers. Featuring a build number of 12H318, this second release, like the first, provides no release notes, and likely simply addresses unresolved issues with Apple Music and other features from last month’s iOS 8.4 release. The latest build has not yet appeared for direct download on the Apple Developer site; it is currently only available as an over-the-air update to those running the first iOS 8.4.1 beta released two weeks ago,

Volkswagen has announced CarPlay support for almost its entire 2016 lineup of cars, with the first models expected to be arriving in dealerships this week. The company’s all-new Modular Infotainment Platform (MIB II) is being incorporated into the entire 2016 VW lineup, “in virtually every trim” and will include support for Apple CarPlay as well as Android Auto, MirrorLink and Volkswagen’s own Car-Net connected vehicle services platform, the latter of which will integrate with VW’s iOS apps to provide features such as remote door lock and unlock, remote honk and light flash, last parked location, remote door and window status check, vehicle monitoring, and more. Volkswagen also plans to provide a VW Car-Net app for Apple Watch later this year that will allow customers to access vehicle features directly from their wrist.

Four different head unit configurations will be available depending on the trim level of the vehicle, with entry level models featuring a basic color touchscreen with a five-inch resistive 400x240 display and AUX-IN, SD card support, an iPhone/iPod-compatible USB interface, and Bluetooth support, but notably omitting CarPlay support. Select trims acrosss the entire Volkswagen line will include the “Composition Media” package which will include full CarPlay support along with a 6.3 or 6.5-inch 800x480 capacitive color touchscreen with proximity sensor along with the ability to sync two phones simultaneously, dual SD card slots, SiriusXM Radio, HD Radio, and FLAC support. Higher trim levels will offer “Discover Media” and “Discover Pro” head units which incorporate all of the features of the “Composition Media” package while adding integrated navigation features.

AT&T is asking the U.S. Federal Trade Commission to cancel a proposed $100 million fine levied against the company for throttling data speeds for users with “unlimited” data plans, The Hill reports. The FCC launched a complaint in October 2014 claiming AT&T slowed speeds for users who had used a certain amount of data each month without informing customers of the policy, then announced in June that it intended to fine the company for that practice.

In a July court filing, AT&T argues that it had properly disclosed its policies to customers – both in online postings and via direct text messages – and took issue with the proposed fine. The company is asking that courts weigh in on the legality of the fine – the largest ever handed down by the FCC – and that any action be halted until they reach a decision. “The Commission’s findings that consumers and competition were harmed are devoid of factual support and wholly implausible,” the company’s filing states. “Its ‘moderate’ forfeiture penalty of $100 million is plucked out of thin air, and the injunctive sanctions it proposes are beyond the Commission’s authority.” The FCC claims a “transparency” provision in a 2010 net neutrality order gives it the authority to levy the fine, but AT&T says that assumption is based on a misreading of a portion of the law taken out of context. The FCC declined to comment on AT&T’s latest filing.

T-Mobile has added Apple Music to its Music Freedom program, allowing listeners to stream Apple Music songs without counting against their data limit. The carrier is also offering customers the ability to lease an iPhone for $15 a month and allowing anyone picking up an iPhone before Labor Day to upgrade to the next model later this year at the same rate. “Now, every single customer who gets a new iPhone 6 this summer as part of this deal can simply swap it for the next iPhone, if they upgrade before the end of the year,” T-Mobile CEO John Legere wrote on the company’s blog. [via CNET]

Apple Music has attracted more than 10 million subscribers in its first four weeks, according to music site Hits Daily Double, which cites unnamed music industry sources. Apple doesn’t publicly disclose streaming numbers, but rights holders who see the reports have reportedly been surprised by how big the figures already are. Numbers for some titles — specifically “a couple of cutting-edge hip-hop titles” — are already competitive with Spotify, which boasts 75 million users. Whether Apple can make it to its rumored goal of 100 million subscribers during the remainder of Apple Music’s three-month free trial — and how those numbers will fare once users have to start paying for the service — remains to be seen. [via 9to5Mac]

Vans collecting data for Apple Maps will be making their way into France and Sweden starting next month, according to the company’s website. The regions around Paris and Stockholm are slated to be photographed in August, adding those cities to the list of major metropolitan areas already being captured in the U.S., England and Ireland. Drivers in the outskirts of those areas — and even beyond — shouldn’t be surprised if they spot the camera vans, as iLounge spotted a van last week well outside the New York City area, mapping the suburb of Tarrytown, N.Y., 25 miles north of midtown Manhattan.

A report from Macotakara has breathed new life into speculation about a possible iPad Air 3 and supports previous rumors that the new iPad mini 4 will be thinner than previous models. The blog cites sources saying the iPad mini 4 will have the same 6.1 mm thickness found in the iPad Air 2, making it slimmer than the 7.5mm thick iPad mini 3. The report also notes that the updated 8MP iSight camera found in the iPad Air 2 will likely make its way into the iPad mini 4, as well as the possibility of a fully laminated display and antireflective screen coating being included on the new device. The possibility of a new iPad Air 3 featuring an A9 chip — but still keeping the same external dimensions as the iPad Air 2 — being released alongside the new “iPad Pro” and the iPad mini 4 is also mentioned, flying in the face of other rumors suggesting the company was skipping an update to the iPad Air this time around.

Police in Beijing have busted a factory that made more than 41,000 fake iPhones — some of which reached the United States — and arrested nine suspects in the counterfeiting operation, Reuters reports. The group set up a factory in January under the guise of a gadget maintenance shop and hired hundreds of workers to repackage second-hand smartphone components for export as iPhones. Police raiding the facility on May 14 found 1,400 handsets and large quantities of accessories. Beijing police said the investigation began after they received a tip from U.S. authorities who had seized some of the fake iPhones. Apple declined to comment, saying the investigation was still ongoing. Knock-off Apple products in China have been a problem for years, pushing Apple to organize a team in 2008 to combat counterfeiters. In 2011, Chinese bloggers uncovered several unauthorized retailers that carefully replicated the look and feel of an Apple Store, right down to the employee uniforms. Since then, the Chinese government has taken stiffer action to protect intellectual property rights, cracking down on fakes and pushing firms to apply for trademarks and patents.

Apple is rumored to be interested in using the body of BMW’s i3 electric car as the starting point for its own electric car, Manager Magazin reports. The German-language publication claims that Apple CEO Tim Cook met with senior managers of the i3 project during a trip to Leipzig and opened negotiations with BMW in the fall of 2014. The talks broke off with no firm deal in place, but the companies have agreed to check in with one another from time to time in the future. Apple refused to comment on the story, but a BMW iDrive app was visible in initial demonstrations of Apple Watch and BMW has long been listed as an auto maker looking to add CarPlay into its vehicles. Cook has also taken meetings with the CEO of Fiat over Apple’s “intervention in the car.”

Apple and Nike have reached a proposed settlement in a class action lawsuit involving Nike’s FuelBand, with Nike offering cash to those affected. Apple is offering no compensation. The lawsuit, filed in 2013, claims that Nike and Apple made false claims about FuelBand’s ability to track calories burned and number of steps taken by users. Both companies still deny any wrongdoing, but Nike stopped producing FuelBands in April 2014 and Apple pulled the device from its stores this March. Under the proposed settlement, Nike is offering $15 cash or a $25 gift card to U.S. Nike stores for each member of the settlement class who submits a claim form and waives their rights to further action in connection with the lawsuit. U.S. residents who bought a Nike+ Fuelband between January 19, 2012 and June 17, 2015 are eligible for the settlement from Nike.

Starting August 7, Best Buy will be the first national retailer outside of Apple Stores to carry the Apple Watch. According to a press release from the company, more than 100 Best Buy stores and the retailer’s website will start selling Apple Watch next Friday, with another 200 stores slated to get the watch “in time for holiday shopping.” Customers will be able to try on and buy Sport and Watch models in 38mm and 42mm sizes, along with accessories including bands, screen shields, stands, and chargers.

The latest edition of iLounge Weekly, our weekly newsletter covering all things iLounge, will be arriving in subscribers’ inboxes early next week. iLounge Weekly is a summary of the week’s best news, reviews, and feature articles we’ve published, and it also features giveaways and accessory discount offers from various companies. There’s still plenty of time to sign up and receive this week’s edition — just use the simple form below to submit your email address, if you haven’t done so already.

Apple has pulled the venerable Nest smart thermostat from its retail and online stores in the wake of a series of new HomeKit products, Mashable reports. Originally designed by former Apple engineers Tony Fadell and Matt Rogers, the Nest thermostat was at the leading edge of connected smart home products and considered by many to be inspired by an Apple design ethos, particularly when Apple became one of the first retailers to sell the device in 2012. While there was some speculation as to whether the Nest would continue to be sold in Apple stores when the company was acquired by Apple’s rival Google early last year, the placement of the product in stores remained largely unchanged.

Over the past year, however, Apple has made several moves to streamline the collection of products sold in its stores and remove products that either compete or don’t fit into the company’s more recent initiatives. For example, Fitbit wearable fitness trackers were removed last October after being slow to integrate with the new iOS 8 HealthKit framework, and Jawbone’s Up and Nike’s FuelBand followed in March shortly before the release of Apple’s own fitness solution in the form the Apple Watch. With the removal of the Nest coming as Apple begins selling the HomeKit-enabled EcoBee 3, this seems to herald a similar move of Apple selling only HomeKit integrated accessories in its stores.

Though Apple has already announced it will be driving vehicles in certain cities to collect Apple Maps data — it provides an updated location list on its website — iLounge spotted an Apple Maps van today in Tarrytown, N.Y. Tarrytown is located in Westchester County, N.Y., about 25 miles north of midtown Manhattan. The sighting isn’t entirely surprising, but it does give us some idea that Apple’s current data collection may expand significantly into the metro areas of the cities listed, as in this case. In a somewhat-related note, iOS 9’s Transit was found last month to go beyond its core cities.

Apple has announced its Back to School 2015 Promotion, later than usual this year and notably excluding any iOS devices or iPod-related offers. Between July 23 and September 18, educational customers purchasing an iMac, MacBook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, or Mac Pro can also elect to receive a $199.95 credit to be applied to a pair of Beats Solo2 On-Ear Headphones or Beats Solo2 Wireless On-Ear Headphones purchased at the same time. The same promotion also applies to purchases made through the U.S. Apple Online Store, however for whatever reason the dates for online purchases are limited to August 6 through September 18.

Apple’s original Back to School promotions began in 2005 with the offer of a free iPod mini with the purchase of a Mac, a promotion that recurred annually in similar forms, changing to bundle an iPod nano and then eventually an iPod touch in 2010. After six years of including a free iPod with the purchase of a Mac, the promotion changed in 2011 to offer a free $100 iTunes Gift Card instead with the purchase of a Mac. Apple expanded the promotion in 2012 to also offer a $50 iTunes Gift card with the purchase of an iPad, and then again in 2013 to also include the iPhone. In 2014, the promotion switched from iTunes gift cards to Apple Store gift cards. This year marks the first time since the promotion began eleven years ago that no iPod, iOS device, or iTunes-related item has been included as part of the promotion.

While Apple has been expected for some time to release a new Apple TV with a remote that would reportedly incorporate a touchpad, a new patent revealed by Patently Apple suggests that Apple may be looking to go a step beyond a simple touchpad with an integrated Touch ID sensor. While the patent itself remains broad, referring simply to a “sensor configured to detect a biometric characteristic of a user,” a fingerprint appears to be the element highlighted in the main drawings, and the text suggests that biometric authentication could be used both for authentication to access secure features such as parentally locked content, as well as identifying a user to select a specific viewing profile such as favorite channels. With the Apple TV being positioned as a hub for Apple’s new HomeKit home automation service, the sensor could also extend to home applications, again both for security and customization.

Apple plans to allow MFi program partners to begin integrating charging pads into Apple Watch accessories, 9to5Mac reports. While existing Apple Watch stands offer a place to insert the standard Apple Watch charger and route cables through the stand, an integrated solution would provide a more efficient solution for consumers, allowing them to avoid having to insert and use their own chargers. The approach would reportedly be similar to how Apple provides components for third-party Apple Watch bands and Lightning cables, with MFi suppliers providing access to the charging components that accessory manufacturers would integrate into their own designs. The integrated charging pad would likely also provide for more design flexibility for third-party docks and stands. The program is said to still be in the early stages, with the component only available in “sample quantities” but Apple not yet open to accepting official plan submissions.